“Scotch-Irish Presbyterians, who formed so large a proportion of the people of North Carolina, and moulded its religious and political character… The religious creed of these Christian immigrants formed a part of their politics so far as to lead them to decide that no law of human government ought to be tolerated in opposition to the expressed will of God. Their ideas of religious liberty have given a colouring to their political notions on all subjects – have been, indeed, the foundation of their political creed. The Bible was their text-book on all subjects of importance, and their resistance to tyrants was inspired by the free principles which it taught and enforced.”

Monday, May 13, 2019

Some very interesting observations here from Tom Paulin, from a 1983 Field Day publication I picked up recently, in which he clearly understands our linguistic complexities and combinations far better than most today - "three fully-fledged languages " – I recall that he presented an excellent documentary for BBCNI about Ulster-Scots around 2003-ish.

Thursday, May 02, 2019

The top colour image is the Holestone near Doagh in south Antrim. The bottom black and white image is from near Kirkcowan in south west Scotland. Ancient stanes made by ancient folk. One who was fascinated by ancient traditions was historian and writer Sir Samuel Ferguson, whose grandfather lived at 'Standing Stone', ie the Antrim Holestone.

Tuesday, April 30, 2019

This document surfaced recently, in a set of photocopies given to me by a late aunt. This is my great-grandfather Robert Thompson finally having the opportunity to buy the six acre farm in 1929. Other documents are dated 1933 so I'm not sure of the precise date that it was all finalised.

He was 71 in 1929. His son William, my grandfather, was 18. An older son, John, had emigrated to Canada in 1925 (previous post here). The Thompsons had farmed these fields as far back as records go - 1750s - and probably back even further than that, but for almost 200 years they had been tenants of the landlord. Francis Heron Scott was the last one they served (partial estate listed here). I wonder what it felt like to finally own the ground that they had sweated over all those generations?

Scott was a GP in Saintfield, who had inherited his estate from his own ancestors back to a Francis Heron of Killyleagh.

Six acres. My father, his two brothers and his two sisters were all raised on this. Self-sufficient with no other income apart from labouring to the local neighbours, the Ralstons and Johnstons. Hard work during every hour of daylight. They say that the agrarian economy was the most gender-equal, because everybody worked themselves to death.

This isn't ancient history, it's a whisker away from living memory. What a different world.